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Category: Video Games

The Nintendo Switch, although a bit disappointing, has some real promise. I do hope it the best when I say that I will not be purchasing it at launch. I’ll buy it someday, which is kind of the same thing I had done with the Wii U. However, I want to talk about some of the promising features it has to offer.

First, the controllers look incredibly innovative. The sheer size is neat, along with the ability to join the two to make a Wii-U game pad-like controller. Having the ability to easily give a controller to a friend and play something like 1 2 Switch or Mario Kart 8 with relative ease at home or on-the-go is really exciting.

The actual mobility of the console is something to awe as well. It has been virtually unseen at the level with which the Switch can travel. The Wii U had minimal range compared to the literally infinite range of the Switch, and that is something to praise. I feel like this will be a healthy blend of Nintendo DS and Consoles, which I believe will work swimmingly. The battery of this also is not an issue, due to the fact that it uses basic USB and has three hours on one of the more graphically intensive games, being Legend of Zelda.

And speaking of, the new Legend of Zelda game looks like a nominee for game of the year. The graphics are stunning, the gameplay seems like a ton of fun, and the open-world aspect looks as good of concept as it was when Fallout 3 was announced. The trailer was unbelievable and the story looks invigorating. All signs point to game of the year, but it would foolish to deem such a thing in January and to say it before the game is even released. With that being said, it’s game of the year.

The other games for the Switch look interesting. The only issue I have with them is the projected prices. However, the games showcased look interesting enough to, maybe, be worth the price tags. And some of the teased games, like Fire Emblem Warriors, get me excited. The games being on cartridges is a fun idea as well that I am all for on a practical level.

Although online subscription is lame, the fact that Internet services will be vastly improved is great news. Wii U services have some problems, so I am gladdened by this. The ability to chat with friends is one of the best features on Xbox and PlayStation, so I am glad that Nintendo is also capitalizing.

That’s about it. Again, I am hesitant about the console and its future. However, I do like some features. Just, for me, the cons outweigh the pros at this moment. I think in the upcoming months, that outlook will swap.

I have been a huge supporter of Nintendo. The first game console I played was the GameCube and ever since I have, eventually, bought the rest of their following consoles. So, when news came out about the NX/Switch I was immediately on board. The official presentation was a few days ago and I have to say that I am greatly concerned.

The quality of the games, as a majority, is one issue that I have. Yes, Legend of Zelda looks like an easy favorite for Game of the Year and Mario Odyssey looks like it could be good. However, the rest of the games looked pathetically dry or tedious to previous titles. And this worries me because the lack of games was one of the issues the previous consoles had faced.

A lack of release dates worries me too because this basically tells me that Nintendo will not release these till much later. Most the games had only brief teaser trailers about them, like Fire Emblem Warriors for example. This worries me because a lack of early releases will not generate sales to create more games or give more contracts to other gaming companies.

Money is probably the biggest issue I have with the console. The Switch itself is well priced. In fact, I have the opportunity to get the system for barely anything if I decide to trade in my Wii U. Yet I am still hesitant because of the prices of the games. 1 2 Switch is going to be $50, which is absurdity. Arms is $60 which is crazy. Pro controller is $70 or $80. Joycon are $70. This means that future games will also likely have these ridiculous prices.This was just horrible with the Wii-U and it looks like the problem will continue with the Switch.

The gall that Nintendo has to re-release games like Splatoon and Mario Kart is unacceptable. Give the game for at least half off to those who bought the previous inferior versions. It is shameful to charge full price for literally the same game with a few features that should have been in the games prior. The fact that I had spent about 80+ dollars on Mario Kart 8 Wii U with DLC and am now expected to buy the same game for sixty more dollars is absurd. Yet, people will do it because they want to see Nintendo back in its hay-day by supporting it. Well, here’s news for ya! IT ISN’T GONNA HAPPEN!

Now look, I know I sound pissed. The simple answer is that I am. However, I will still more than likely be purchasing, or at least following, the new console. Why? Well I am one of those people I ridiculed above. I want to see Nintendo succeed, but I can just tell that the Switch is not the way they are going to. I love the innovation Nintendo has with their consoles, but the games, with the exception of the new LoZ, are the absolute opposite of that. The games release for Wii U are, in majority, comparable to flash games you could find for free. The system, like the Wii U, has unlimited potential. The games, however, are too limited.

Thanks for reading. Would like to know your thoughts on the new console. More positive post probably within the next week about the Switch.

For those unaware, Esports, or competitive video gaming, has become a growing sport in many circles. Although not fully accepted by the public (and with good reason), companies like ESPN and TBS have bought Esports events and have been advertising them like “real” sports. Some people believe that video games on a competitive level should be considered sport, while other believe that a lack of physical activity makes gaming a hobby and nothing more. I agree with the former.

In my opinion, competitive gaming is a sport. First, a sport requires extensive training to become better than others, which is true with gaming. Also, a sport requires a player to be inherently better than other common/casual players. This is true in gaming as well.

I think the main issue with people accepting video gaming as a sport is the fact that there is an inherent disconnect between the human and the avatar which they control. Sports are about seeing the natural ability of humans and what we as a species can be capable of. The fact that in some video games the characters controlled aren’t even human creates a subconscious disconnect in the mind between the player and the character. Human talent is expressed, just in an unconventional way.

I don’t want this to become a rant, so I will digress. If you believe that a lack of physical ability aside from hand-eye coordination completely declassifies an activity as a, “sport” than I respect your opinion. I think the greater discussion is about what precedent Esports can set for the future of sport.

Think of the possibilities. If (and what seems to be becoming a question of when) Esports becomes a legitimate sport in the eyes of society, other hobbies such as singing, eating, etc. will also likely be labeled as sport. The sports realm is experiencing a huge shift, and, to me, it is exciting. Here’s a quick list of a few activities I see getting a sports following in the future:

Singing (Already gaining ground as competitive with shows like The Voice).

Eating (Also gaining ground as competitive sport).

Board Games (Not huge, although something tells me this will be regarded as sport shortly).

Drawing/Painting (i.e. best drawing in certain time limit).

Cooking (Closest to becoming sport in my opinion with shows like Chopped).

Really, the options are limitless. The future of the term, “sport,” is on pace to have a diluted and controversial definition, akin to that of, “art.” Soon, our society may even see the two terms have similar meanings, with the only difference being that sports are competitive in nature, while art is not particularly competitive.

I am fully excited for the transformation of sports as a whole. I want to see what people consider to be a sport and what they consider to be a mere activity. Where is the line drawn, or is there even a line to draw?

Thanks for reading. Plan on posting at least three times a week. Have a wonderful rest of your day!

This year’s E3 was a pleasant surprise. All major companies (besides EA) had, subjectively, successful and entertaining conferences.

For those unaware, E3 is a 5-day event where the next big video game titles are announced. The companies which have big announcements that usually last more than an hour or so include Microsoft, Sony, Ubisoft, Bethesda, and EA (Nintendo is also considered a big company, but they present their announcements in live streams).

EAwas the first to present their new games, and they had set the bar incredibly low. They showed little to no gameplay in their trailers, focusing on, yet again, sports titles which included FIFA 17 and Madden 17. EA also showed a few teaser quality trailers of Mass Effect 4 and Battlefield 1. The only highlights of their announcement was Fe, an indie title which appeared to look like a 3D platformer with puzzle elements. The only other highlight came after their actual conference, where they had streamed 3 matches of Battlefield 1. Titanfall 2 was also intriguing, with a confirmed campaign which seemed really neat.

My thoughts- EA, despite their focus on showing fans Star Wars DLC and other padding to make a 10 minute conference last an hour, still managed to make me excited. Battlefield 1, particularly the gameplay they displayed after, was really promising. Titanfall 2 campaign is exciting, even though the game looks exactly the same. Also the Mass Effect trailer had made me optimistic for the game’s future. It was, however, way too long for the amount of actual gameplay they had shown.

In Summary- DICE, your our (EA’s) only hope!

Bethesdawas next to show their presentation. Spoiler: It was, obviously, better than its predecessor’s. The showcase showed games like Doom and Fallout 4 DLC and updates. More surprisingly, Bethesda announced VR-compatibility with both of these games in the future. They also showed a lot of gameplay for Dishonored 2 and had shown a trailer for a sequel/new ip called PREY.

My thoughts- Bethesda was, again, quite successful with their presentation. Dishonored 2 is probably the thing which I am most excited for. In fact, I am playing the first Dishonored just because of the trailer. PREY was intriguing as well, even though I am not a big fan of horror anything. Fallout and Doom DLC seemed kind of lame to me, but maybe Fallout/Doom fans have a differing opinion. Fallout Shelter being on PC and now having a “Combat System,” is a nice bow on top of their solid conference.

In Summary- Arkane Studios has got a lot of work to do, although it all seems promising.

Microsoft was the first to present the day after Bethesda and EA. Microsoft started with the announcement of the Xbox One S, a slimmer version of the Xbox One. They then went through some new features on the Xbox One, notably Esports bracketing support and Cross play capabilities with Windows 10. Major games they showed included Gears of War 4, Sea of Thieves, Forza, State of Decay 2, Halo Wars 2, Dead Rising 4, We Happy Few and Recore. Other games were discussed, like indie titles which are mostly all seen already on PC. At the end of the conference, Microsoft announced Project Scorpio, a more powerful Xbox One.

My Thoughts- Microsoft had a good showcase of their product. The idea of cross-play capabilities for future Xbox games is interesting, particularly with games like Gears of War 4 and Halo Wars 2 which were at one time likely to be Xbox exclusive. Microsoft seemed to be much more friendly toward the consumer with this idea amongst other pro-consumer plans. Sea of Thieves, We Happy Few, Recore are all a breath of fresh air from the sheer amount of shooting and zombies Microsoft had shown. Project Scorpio is something I am skeptical of, because they say that any game on the Project Scorpio is playable on older Xbox One consoles. However, the games will start to be made for the Project Scorpio and more of an afterthought on the previous consoles, so will it be ported nicely or will it be more akin to Black Ops 3, which, on Xbox 360, only had a poorly looking multiplayer mode.

In Summary- Microsoft and skepticism. Two words completely dependent of one another.

PC Gamer had a little show as well, which was interesting, but was mainly filled with updates to games which are old and not as popular anymore (i.e. ARK survival). Also showed future Steam games like Lawbreakers, which were interesting as well, but personally does not peak my interest. Because of this, I am not going to talk as much about this E3 presentation.

Ubisoft had their presentation near the end of the PC gaming show. Ubisoft had started their show in an interesting manner. They had a dance group with wild, flamboyant costumes do an equally wild and flamboyant dance. Then, Aisha Taylor, the host of the Ubisoft conference, had a memorial for the Orlando Shooting victims. It was just unclassy and not well planned or thought out. Anyways, the major games they showed were Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, Watch Dogs 2, For Honor, Steep, Trials of the Blood Dragon, Just Dance 2017 (reason for the aforementioned dance), and South Park: Fractured But Whole.

My Thoughts- Ubisoft, despite their lack of class, had anounced some really intriguing games, such as For Honor and Steep. Their other games had focused on shooting mainly, like their most infamous titles Tom Clancy and Watch Dogs. Personally, I do not care for either, but others probably do. To be fair, Watch Dogs 2 does look a lot more impressive than the previous. South Park:Fractured But Whole also was a highlight of their presentation. The rest was kind of bland.

In Summary- Thank you for showing gameplay, however the gameplay itself was, subjectively, a bore.

Sony was the last to showcase their games. The games they showed included Horizon: Zero Dawn, God of War, Days Gone, Death Stranded, Resident Evil 7, The Last Guardian, Spiderman, and a Crash Bandicoot Revival. They really only showed gameplay, with a mentioning of PlayStation VR release date and price.

My Thoughts– The best E3 conference of them all. The games all seemed interesting and mostly all had gameplay, with the exception to Crash, Spiderman, and Death Stranded. I was specifically impressed with Days Gone, Horizon:Zero Dawn, and God of War. Also, Spiderman and Death Stranded have credibility with Insomniac and Kojima behind their development, respectively. The gameplay they showed was interesting, but they had shown zero indie games, aside from Last Guardian which will likely be sold as a major title anyways.

In Summary- Finally, a Sony conference that only lasts an hour AND is really entertaining.

Nintendo had streamed their games with gameplay the next two days after Sony and company. The games they had announced during the E3 timeframe included Legend of Zelda:Breath of the Wild, Pokemon Sun/Moon, Paper Mario: Color Splash, Monster Hunter:Generations, Yokai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls/Bony Spirits, Mario Party 3DS, and Pokemon GO. No word on the NX, Nintendo’s upcoming console.

My Thoughts- On Nintendo’s format, I appreciate it, however I wish they also had a small Nintendo Direct as well to show exactly what it is they are releasing. When I went to periodically view the stream, all I would see was the new Legend of Zelda. The games themselves are interesting. Paper Mario, to be specific, is something I am especially excited about due to a new combat system and my overall satisfaction with the series on Nintendo consoles. Pokemon GO and Sun/Moon are also exciting for more obvious reasons. Legend of Zelda was different, however I am skeptical at this moment. The rest is kind of disappointing, but this was still leagues better than last year’s announcements.

In Summary- NX?

In conclusion, I hope you had an enjoyable E3. I would like to mention that if E3 is not entertaining for you, then watching a restream of an E3 conference is entertaining for me. I personally watched NerdCubed and TotalBiscuit this E3 on Twitch, and I must say that it was much more entertaining this way. Anyways, Thank you for reading. Hope it was enjoyable to read. Have a good one.

I know I said I wasn’t going to talk about mobile gaming again, but it is such an interesting topic for me, so hopefully this interest transfers to the reader. The amount of people who play mobile games is astronomically larger then the community of conventional gamers, so its also nice to hit more bases of the population. Yet, with this astronomical population comes games which mostly contain microscopic differences.

The photo above is proof of this, and was my inspiration to create this article on such short notice. The fact is, many games on mobile stores are imitations of previous successes. King is a great example of this, with their many match 3 games, which all play the same with little change. The many rip-offs of Clash of Clans, Crossy Road, and, most notoriously, the Flappy Bird clones. Now, this may seem like a surprise to some, but, from a business standpoint, it makes perfect sense to recreate apps that have reached major success, instead of creating new, original ideas that may not be, for lack of a better term, approved by the public. What’s more surprising, to me, is the success these games have. Here’s a few examples of these successes:

Supercell (CoC- 100 million downloads) “Inspired”

Clash of Lords 2– 10 million downloads

Lords Mobile– 1 million downloads

Castle Clash: Age of Legends– 50 million downloads

Clash of Spartan– 1 million downloads

Crossy Road (50 million downloads) “Inspired”

Crossy Heroes- 1 million downloads

Crossy Creeper: Smashy Skins– 1 million downloads

Angry Birds (100 million downloads) “Inspired”

Knock Down- 10 million downloads

Angry Frogs- 1 million downloads

Angry Hero- 100 thousand downloads

Additional Cloned Games

Don’t tap the white tiles (highest clone-5 mil)

Subway Surfers (highest clone- 10 mil)

Pou (highest clone- 10 mil)

Fruit Ninja (highest clone- 10 mil)

Hill Climb Racing (highest clone- 10 mil)

I hope you get the point that these clone games are really successful. And I want to state that I do NOT want to be judgmental of these companies, however I can’t stop being critical towards the public for inspiring this behavior from developers. Great, original mobile games never become as popular as these clones for reasons partially unclear to me. I think it has to do with the overall repetitiveness of some greater games, like Angry Birds, and a desire to relive the original experience with a fresh appearance, which is appeased by a game like Angry Frogs. Speaking of Angry Birds, they are, hands down, the greatest at avoiding this problem, with their many recreations of the Angry Birds game.

This practice of taking inspiration from other successful games will still work so long as people still download these clone games. Even Supercell is guilty of this with Hay Day, a Farmville clone. And Farmville, a clone of Happy Farm. Again, I do not want to sound condescending towards the developers, for this is one of the only ways to become successful in the industry. This or paying lots of money for advertisements. Hopefully, this pattern changes in the future, but these changes will be a challenge to implement, especially with the market growing as big as it has.

Thanks for reading. Heres the song. Also, I want to shoutout this mobile game titled The Greedy Cave. Really original for mobile platforms and I don’t believe it is a clone of any mobile game. Check it out, its a lot of fun. And I promise, no more mobile stuff for a while.

DISCLAIMER: This is NOT written by any psychology major. Its just a person, myself, stating what I have observed from mobile games and gamers, along with my own personal experiences with mobile gaming. This information is, therefore, subjective.

For those unaware, mobile gaming has become increasingly popular and, more importantly, profitable. Multi-billion companies (yes, BILLION) like King and Supercell have yet to make a single game that hasn’t been for mobile users. Hell, Supercell has only had three games until the recent release of Clash Royale (which was no pushover title either). These companies, among many others, have learned what the average user wants in a game, and have exploited it in such a way for their financial benefit.

The key point in many mobile games is the competitive nature of the users. Not all mobile users feel this way, but many are fans of competitive games. Supercell does a great job at simulating this competitive atmosphere, even though their games may not seem that competitive. Aside from HayDay, their games all feature some player versus player interaction. Granted, Clash of Clans and Boom Beach contain more of a base defense type of gameplay, but the player is the one who builds the base, technically making the games contain PvP. This competition on a global scale inspires players to go through any means to win, some to the limits of paying actual money, to be even greater.

Companies, like Supercell, also thrive in exploiting a human’s sense of achievement and usefulness to establish their mobile powerhouse. This is done through a clan system, which, again, is found in all Supercell games besides HayDay. The clan system fills a sense of meaning in playing a game. A successful “clan” system for any mobile game usually contains a few variables: a contribution/donation system to the clan, PvP within clans, and benefits built into the game which provide extra, for lack of a better term, stuff to a member of a clan. All three of these are found in games like Clash of Clans, Magic Rush: Heroes (Elex), and, to a lesser degree, Clash Royale. And this is just a small selection pool of successful mobile games with this feature.

Now, anybody who is aware of the mobile game market knows that not all games have this aspect of “teamwork.” They don’t, however, they do share this idea of obtaining self achievement and “bragging rights”. For these next few paragraphs, I will specifically be talking about King and all of their match 3 success stories. However, the specifics of the game’s analysis can be applied to a much broader range of mobile games. Now, digressions aside, King is, arguably, the most successful mobile game developer. Let me rephrase, the most profitable mobile game developer, for success is WAY more subjective, as if this piece isn’t opinionated enough.

Yes, Supercell, EA, and other mobile designers make a boatload of money just from mobile platforms. Yet, to me, King seems the most profitable, especially now with the partnership with Activision and Blizzard. King does this by making a fairly large amount of games which all have similar gameplay technicalities. And many game companies (i.e.SGN, PlayFlock, BubbleSoft, and a TON of others) copy this gameplay design and it is just as, if not more, profitable. Seriously, I challenge you to search match 3 games on the Google Play store and see just how many game developers have copied King. Now, I am NOT defending King in any way, or at least I don’t mean to. I hate King, if anything, for their lack of originality (although Alpha Betty was a unique twist). Well, their seems to be two major communities within mobile games: the competitive/cooperative multiplayer gamers, ruled by Supercell, and the casual gamers, ruled by King (pun intended).

Let me follow the above statement with the disclaimer that these two groups are MAJOR generalizations that has many exceptions. Now, this casual community of mobile gamers seem to be busier, with work or other hobbies occupying most of their day. So, these on-the-go games with fairly simple controls seem to be their perfect hookup. These players seem to be more in the demographic of people without much experience to conventional gaming (again, generalizations). The reason why I feel games like this are more profitable than, say, a game like Clash of Clans is for the demographic it targets. The majority of the players of this game have no patience to wait for stamina, lives, etc., due to aforementioned reasons. So, they spend money in order to play the game as it pertains to their busy schedules. Competitive mobile gamers tend to be able to invest more time in the game, which will cause spending as well. But, this demographic of competitive gamers are in no prevalent rush to gain resources or lives quicker, therefore becoming free-riders (a mobile gamer that spends no money on micro-transactions in game). Some games under this casual category include Puzzles and Dragons, Angry Birds, and other games which seem to have simplistic controls that are easy to learn.

So, my opinion on the “factions” of mobile gaming. As much as I want to say mobile games and free to play games will be the death of pure video game development, I equally want to say this is great for the franchise. Yes, these games may inspire great developers on consoles to move to mobile devices. To me, this growth in cheaper options will inspire great developers to make even greater games in order to make sure the consumer will have more of a reason to buy the more expensive game. Sure, we’ll have more free to play games on mobile devices, but mobile devices are also evolving their technology.To me, I think this is great for both mobile gaming communities and conventional gaming communities. However, only time can really tell.

Thanks for reading. A bit more subjective than my other posts. Hopefully, this won’t become a pattern, along with the mobile gaming pattern. I want to stop mobile gaming posts for a bit, so maybe a poem next post. I will talk about mobile gaming, however, again, for it is such an interesting topic for me not only to write but to read about. Also, its a revolution in gaming, so I feel its a must for a video gaming blog.

To those who are unaware of PC gaming, Steam is a platform used to, well, play video games on computers. Steam is notorious for being coated with indie games along with the triple A titles. As great as a 60$ game is, sometimes its nice to play a game that doesn’t bust the bank. Here are a few of my recommendations that you may or may not have heard of, ranked 1-5, 1 being the best:

5-Awesomenauts (10$)- This game is a 2D platformer with heavy influence from MOBA games (i.e. League of Legends or Dota). The goal of the game is to take out the other teams base and turrets that guard said base. The PvP in the game works well with 3 players to a team. Finding a match is not quick, but its not unbearable. The developers also update the game every now and again. The only issue with the game is the DLC heroes, which are not pushovers by any means.

4- Freestyle Basketball 2(Free to Play)- Although not mainly a steam game, the game is free to play on steam. The game is pay to win, no doubt. But, a player can still enjoy it as a competitive sports game in the rookie and pro servers, which is where most of the f2p players are found. Each player controls one player in a 3v3 street rules basketball game. For competitive junkies, the game can be enjoyable, especially in the rookie and pro stages. The community, for the most part, is courteous and helpful. There are a few rotten apples, but your teammates are usually respectful in these early stages, even if they are better than you. One issue is that the servers are weak and it takes some time to get into an actual match, but shootarounds take place of a loading screen so its not so bad.

3- Insurgency/Counter Strike: Global Offensive(15$ each)- I grouped these together due to their similarity. Both are first-person shooters and both are followed by competitive communities. CS:GO’s community is ok at best. The players can seem rude to newer players in casual or competitive classic matches, but while perfecting your skill, the community, although not supportive, is respectful. Insurgency is a bit more graphically taxing, requiring a more legitimate gaming PC. Sure you could play the game with not so great frames and horrid graphics, but it is not ideal (trust me). Nevertheless, what I played of the game was more entertaining then CS:GO. The community seemed good (at least in casual matchups) and the gunplay seemed much more realistic then that in CS:GO, which some players may like. In general, both are fun games that you will want a mic in.

2- Brawlhalla (Free to Play)- This was a close one for me between one and two. Both games are great and I highly recommend them both. Brawlhalla is basically a (as of now) f2p Smash bros with better online play. Need I say more. Now, let me say that I LOVE Smash Bros. I bought all DLC stages and characters for the game and I consider myself good at the game. Brawlhalla is also great. The characters a the only issue for me, due to the fact that all of them have, although different special weapons, the same moves. The goal of the game is to pick up weapons on the battlefield and use those to knock the enemy off the stage. The game has a skill cap, in my opinion, unlike Smash Bros so that is its main fault, but the game is still great, especially if it stays f2p.

1- Darkest Dungeon(25$)- Darkest Dungeon is a single player game first and foremost, so if you are strictly a fan of multiplayer games then you can stop reading. Also, this game has turn-based fighting, so leave if you don’t like that. Aside from these “flaws,” the game is, well, flawless. The game has you recruiting party members of different classes and adventuring in dungeons in a paper mario-esqe style. Although I think the game is its own breed, it is most comparable to a mixture of dark souls, xcom, and paper mario. The game truly is great and I have nothing to say against this game. *Heads up: The game just went out of early access, so the game may have some issues. However, the developers seem to be adamantly fixing problems.*

P.S.> Don’t know how frequently I’ll be posting. Just know that I’ll post when I’m in the mood, like I am today.

Also, here’s a good song. I think I’ll start using Spotify links now (Explicit)(Rap(kind of))